not sure where this should go - using Round Up

[Mommysongbird]

So we have a major problem with vincia aka: periwinkle, so this is one reason our chickens cannot free range, periwinkle will kill them and goats. I have been searching online all morning of a way to get rid of this stuff, preferably an organic way, but there are none. So in my lengthy seach all of the answers keep coming back Round Up.

As much as I don't want to use the stuff, it looks like I am going to have to.

So I have a question. How long after the Round Up is applied (there will be at least 4 applications along with pulling the periwinkle by hand) can we let our girls over in that area? We will put down grass seed almost emediately (sp?).

 

[cassie]

Call the manufacturer. There should be a number on the package. I don't think Roundup is toxic to anything anyway unless it has roots. Are you sure the vinca is toxic? I used to have vinca and free ranging goats and chickens and never had a problem with either. I don't remember the goats or the chickens eating any of it though. Usually critters will leave toxic plants alone unless they are starving.

 

[Mommysongbird]

Our vet was the one who told me it was toxic to goats and I looked it up and it is also toxic to chickens. Most chickens will probably stay away from it, but I am not going to take any chances, we only have 4 girls and I don't want to chance loosing any of them because of this stuff.

Besides, I can't stand to see it in my yard any longer. My mother-in-law brought a sprig of it one day and asked if she could put it in my flower garden til she moved to her new place, well by the time she moved this stuff killed all of my other flowers and plants and took over.

 

[Imp]

I have used round up in my yard in a similar way you are planning. I had English Ivy and morning glory taking over. (creeping in from a neighbors yard).

First off I don't buy Round Up brand. I buy the generic and mix it up myself. It is significantly less expensive.

And I would suggest not pulling the Vinca till it is completely dead. Round up works by being absorbed through the leaves, so eliminating the leaves will just allow the roots to maybe recover.
The morning glory was easily killed with one spraying and died withing a few days and I was able to pull it. The Ivy just turned yellowish with one application, so I left the leaves and resprayed 1 or 2 more times till it was dead brown, then I pulled it.

A good rain, or watering will wash it into the soil.

I never restricted the chickens when I did this, but they never showed any interest in eating either.

Imp

 

[rparrny]

Round up works best when it's warm and sunny so try to gauge your treatment at a time when it looks like you will have a few warm sunny days. It will still work in cloudy conditions but it will take forever for it to die off. Vinca is toxic to just about everyone, two of the most common chemotherapy drugs, vincristine and vinblastine are made from vinca. Most animals will just not go near it and if you have a well fed animal that does...well it probably would have died from another stupid move anyway...survival of the fittest. I wouldn't keep an animal penned up just because of the threat that they MIGHT eat it.
Good luck,
Rivka

 

[Mommysongbird]

well that is not the only reason why they are not free ranged yet. We live under the railroad tracks and right beside the road. I am still going to have to fence in an area for them to go into, but that will be better than their run all the time.

Thanks for all the posts and info. Guess we will be off to Wally World to buy weed killer. By the way Imp, what kind do you get if you don't buy Round Up?

 

[Imp]

There are several brands that are Round-Up.
The bottle I have now is called:

Hi-Yield
super concentrate
KILL-ZALL
Weed And Grass Killer

the bottle before was called 41% Compleet

Just bottles of plant killer with 41% Glyphosphate Same as the Round Up.

The current bottle is 2 1/2 oz per gallon of water. I use 4 oz in a 1 1/2 gallon sprayer. 1 1/2 gallon goes a long way, and with a 1 qt bottle it lasts for a few years, and I spray some of the neighbors driveways if they want me to.
It is about $20 per bottle(qt) but have found it on sale or clearance for $10.

Imp

 

[Mommysongbird]

Well I ended up getting Weed-B-Gone (have gotten it before and it worked good on a lot of weeds and a few other things we had. We'll see if it works. Thanks for all the comments.

 

[bruceha2000]

I had the Fish and wildlife guy come out last week to look at our new property. I want to make the woods "good for wildlife" and they have a program to help with that. The first thing he noted was a ton of Buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica). It is an invasive species with berries the birds will eat but they have basically zero nutritional value. This stuff is found all along roads with phone lines because, well, birds sit on phone lines and birds poop seeds.

Anyway, he said the way to get rid of it was to wait until August, then cut it down and used Roundup. Not the generic store stuff but one with 15% to 20% of the active ingredient (glyphosate) and pour it directly on the cut off trunk/stalk (depending on the size of the thing). Small ones can be pulled by hand. He said it would take 2 years to kill the bigger ones. Don't know how this would work with Periwinkle since it is a small plant but Imp's suggestion to wait until it is dead (or in the case of Buckthorn when the fluids start going DOWN the plant instead of up) makes sense and you can hit the roots rather than spraying it all over the place. Sort of like drip watering plants rather than wasting a lot of water with a sprinkler. Put the stuff WHERE you need it.

 

[mandelyn]

You do the same with honeysuckle, cut it down, and spray round up right where you cut it so it goes inside. Needs to be fresh cut, if you wait, it won't absorb. I was skeptical, but it worked! Then you can dig it out come fall, and no little ones will come back.

I've tried the generic ones, not much luck, not even on small little broad leaf weeds. You should see my dandelion collection out front!

Though if you get a concentrate and mix it stronger, you might have some luck with a generic type if you get the potency strong enough. Just be sure it has the same active ingredient.